A police officer who ruled no action should be taken against a driver who ran into a cyclist while driving on the wrong side of the road put “the reputation of Merseyside Police at risk”.

PC Simon Lewis recommended that Ali Farahani, who drove 60m on the wrong side of the road before knocking down Daniel Ayers in Old Swan, be released without charge.

It was only when Mr Ayers, 42, died in hospital 11 days after the October 2010 crash that his colleagues reviewed the evidence.

Tuebrook businessman Farahani was eventually jailed for 10 months for dangerous driving.

A court heard how “in a moment of madness” he decided to veer into the wrong lane rather than wait in queuing traffic on Prescot Road.

Witnesses described his manoeuvre as “reckless”, “irresponsible” and “crazy”.

After Farahani was locked up, Mr Ayers’ sister Georgina Moore complained that the crash was not initially properly investigated.

She said PC Lewis failed to conduct a full and proper investigation and that he was “discriminatory” because her brother, an alcoholic, was drunk at time of the accident.

Misconduct proceedings were initially ruled out until the police watchdog, the IPCC, twice intervened.

PC Lewis was found to have carried out a substandard investigation but cleared of the discrimination allegation.

Chief Insp Phil Davies, who chaired the hearing, ruled that there was “no evidence that [PC Lewis] treated Mr Ayers any differently than any other collision victim due to his intoxication”.

But Mr Davies said the PC’s behaviour “displayed a disregard of the policy and procedures expected of a roads policing officer”.

Issuing a written warning, he told the officer: “Your decision to take no further action jeopardised the subsequent court trial and placed the reputation of Merseyside Police at risk.

“I have considered your training record and length of service within the roads policing unit and feel that this illustrates that you knew the standards expected of you but chose not to investigate at the appropriate level.”

As revealed by the ECHO today, a High Court judge has now ordered a fresh investigation over the unproven discrimination charge.

Judge Stephen Davies said the decision to clear the officer at the police misconduct hearing was “not sufficiently reasoned”.

He said there “plainly was evidence which indicated precisely that” the officer knew Mr Ayers was a drinker, which potentially influenced his decision to recommend no further action.

He said the original decision was not sufficiently reasoned and ordered a fresh inquiry by the force, led by a different investigator.

Merseyside Police confirmed that a new misconduct meeting will be held.

A spokesman said: “The meeting will address the investigating officer’s original decision to take no further action against the driver involved in the road traffic collision from which Daniel Ayers died.

“A subsequent investigation by other officers within this force into the collision resulted in charges against the motorist.